There is an old saying that once you do certain things, undoing them can prove difficult or even impossible. I'm starting to agree. My name is Alec La Pierre. Pronounced exactly the way it sounds. A six-foot-one, lean and wiry young Black man with light brown skin, curly Black hair and pale green eyes. My father Napoleon La Pierre is Black and my mother Eileen Duarte was part Jamaican and part Irish. These days, I'm so mad that I'm actually starting to see red. What's my problem? I hate everyone. I guess a lot of people feel like they hate the world but I really do. If an asteroid were to hit the earth tomorrow, I wouldn't feel upset. The way I see it, anything that wipes out humanity is doing the cosmos a favor. Why am I so glum? I guess you could say that I've been around too many lousy people.
The funny thing is that three days ago, I felt like I was on top of the world. Then my world came crashing down. How did it happen? Long story. Since you're here, we might as well start at the beginning. It was the summer of 2009 and I was having the time of my life. I'd recently graduated from the Carroll School of Management at Boston College. I finally had my MBA and I was only twenty four years old. Not bad, huh? I was engaged to a beautiful young woman named Megan Franks. A tall, stylish and exquisitely gorgeous Black American Princess. The daughter of a wealthy African-American family from Atlanta, Georgia. We met at the Student Center at Northeastern, which she attends. Megan and I fell in love. I thought we were going to be together forever. I don't believe in fairytales anymore than the average person does, but this time I made an exception.
Many of the people who knew us thought Megan and I were a match made in the kingdom of heaven. The offspring of two wealthy African-American families meeting and falling in love at a college in Boston. We were having the time of our lives. I'm a native of Boston's South End and Megan had recently moved there from Atlanta, the crown jewel of the South. We were very different people, yet we had a lot in common. I've met many good-looking, intelligent women at many colleges and universities in Boston. However, I've never met anyone like Megan before. She was simply divine, folks. It's hard to meet a good-looking, and talented Black female college student who's not stuck up. Especially if she's from a wealthy family.
When I met Megan, I was smitten but I can't say I was holding out much hope. I've met too many rich Black chicks with an attitude problem. Megan wasn't like that. She was smart, friendly and quite open. In fact, she was quite humble. Like I said, I've never met anybody like that. Myself, I'm not very humble. I am quite proud of my origins and my accomplishments. I don't brag, I just don't mind telling people the truth. Megan was the total opposite. She almost seemed embarrassed by the fact that her father, Mitchell Franks was the author of a large number of internationally best-selling nonfiction books about urban policy, corporate management and diversity politics in the workplace. As for her mother, Rosa Andrade Franks, she's the first Black female president of Terrence Sanford College, one of the whitest schools in the South.
I must say I was impressed with the Franks family. They did fairly well for themselves. I always run a background check on women I'm seriously interested in. I believe the apple doesn't fall far from the tree, so when you look at a woman's immediate family, you have a good idea who and what she is. Of course, the picture isn't always accurate but it gives you some idea. Proceeding with caution into any new relationship is a must, of course. I've been at Boston College for years and I've dated all kinds of women. Black women. Asian women. Latin women. Middle-Eastern women. White chicks don't really do it for me but I've got nothing against them. I know they won't miss me. Every other Black man on campus has got one of them on his arm. It takes a lot for a woman to impress me. Looks and intelligence help, but they're not everything. A woman's character matters to me as well. I need to know who and what I'm dealing with otherwise what's the point?
Boston College attracts a lot of rich, stuck-up brats. I ought to know, I used to be one of them. A lot of the students say they're interested in philanthropy but they aren't. Megan was one of those rare people who put her money where her mouth was. Rather than merely talk about how she wanted to help poor inner city families or simply make a donation to the Salvation Army or some other outfit, she volunteered. And this she did without fanfare. She rolled up her sleeves and went to work at a homeless shelter in Boston. And you know what? She didn't do it to get attention. She simply felt like helping people. This Black female millionaire seemed to have a heart of gold. I was drawn to her. But I was still proceeding with caution. I've been burned in the past. No woman is perfect, folks. I know this. I still wanted to believe that a kindred soul existed. Someone who would be perfect for me. I don't believe in perfection but who says I can't find the right companion?
